Einride, an autonomous trucking company, has rolled out its driverless vehicle at a GE Appliances facility in Selmer, Tennessee. This electric, cabless truck is now in full-time operation, transporting finished goods between GE Appliances’ manufacturing site and its Selmer warehouse from Monday to Thursday.
The driverless, zero-emission vehicle undertakes up to seven trips a day along a 0.3-mile private road. This deployment follows a series of successful trials, which began in a controlled environment at GE Appliances’ Appliance Park headquarters two years ago and later progressed to a public road in the U.S. last year.
This initiative is part of a larger goal to create an automated logistics system that enhances worker safety and ergonomics at the loading docks while boosting efficiency. The system includes advanced technology like AI cameras that automatically open and close dock doors, and the Slip robot that loads and unloads the truck, cutting loading times by up to 80%.
Harry Chase, a GE Appliances executive, mentioned that using Einride’s autonomous technology helps reduce emissions and allows workers to concentrate on more meaningful tasks, eliminating physically challenging activities like climbing on and off forklifts and connecting trailers. He emphasized that robotics and automation should enhance human jobs.
Henrik Green, the general manager of autonomous technologies at Einride, expressed pride in partnering with GE Appliances and leading the industry in autonomous technology. Einride first showcased its autonomous truck design in 2017 and has since developed successive versions, culminating in the current design.